Drip protector for bottles



Oct. 27, 1936.

' DRIP PROTECTOR FOR BOTTLES A. A. SCHOLL- 2,058,915

Filed Feb. 8, 1935 INVENTOR. 41.66? ,4. J'C/WZZ ATTORNEY.

Patented Oct. 27, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIQE mesne assignments, toThe Chase National Bank of the City of New York, New York, N. Y.,

trustee Application February 8, 1935, Serial No. 5,589

5 Claims.

My invention has a primary objective to provide a cheap form ofprotector to be applied to bottles to absorb any moisture collected onits surface and to prevent water from dripping from the bottles, therebyto protect the clothes and hands of the user.

It is a further object of my invention to devise such a protector whichmay be very cheaply manufactured from a minimum of material.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a form for suchprotector which will most nearly conform to'the shape of the bottlesfitting therein.

It is a further object of my invention to provide such a protectorformed from two different materials, one of such materials performingthe primary function of absorption and the other of such materialscontributing enormously to ease in manufacture and/ or to the sales andadvertising appeal of the protector as a whole.

Referring to the drawing wherein like numerals refer to like partsthroughout:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a bottle protector made in accordance with myinvention;

Fig. 2 is a modification of the form shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a further form of the invention;

Fig. 4 shows details applicable to the several forms;

Fig. 5 illustrates the form of the invention shown in Fig. 1 as it wouldbe formed on certain types of machines;

Fig. 6 is a variation of the device;

Fig. '7 corresponding to Fig. 3, shows the bottle protector formed oftwo different materials;

Fig. 8 corresponding to Fig. 2, shows the device as formed from twodifferent materials; and

Fig. 9 shows one of my bottle protectors applied to a bottle.

The bottle protectors forming my present invention are designed to bemanufactured on the type of machine wherein a strip of paper or similarmaterial is formed into a tube and separated into separate articles. Theprovision of die cuts, and the forming of a tube and tubular articles,may be accomplished by well known means.

A primary object of my invention is to so form the bottle protectorsthat they may be easily and quickly opened and slipped over a bottle.The provision of a projecting flap or flaps is accomplished by suitablemechanism, which flaps not only facilitate the opening of the devices,but facilitate the folding of a portion of the protector over the bottomof a bottle inserted therein.

In Fig. 1 there is illustrated a bottle protector comprising a tubehaving a front wall I!) and a rear wall H, the tube being formed byadhesively uniting the edges of a strip of paper at l2. The rear wall Itis considerably longer than the front wall, being provided withprojecting flaps l3 and M, the corresponding material of the front wallhaving been removed by dies or otherwise. The edges l5 and it of thefront and back walls, respectively, extend straight across theprotector, thereby facilitating the formation of a series of protectorsof the same size and shape. In the use of this form of the device,either end flap I3 or It. may be grasped and the protector shaken openand slipped over a bottle. Either end flap 1 may then be folded acrossthe bottom of the bottle. The articles perform the functions ofabsorbing the moisture adhering to the surface of a wet bottle andpreventing drops from falling therefrom. The wet bottom of the bottlewill tend to hold the end flap in place after it has been positioned bya simple wiping motion, either with the palm of the hand or by slidingthe bottle across the surface of a table.

In Fig. 2 the same form of bottle protector is illustrated, there being,however, but one end flap l3 provided. This form entails less waste inthe manufacture thereof and embodies the advantages of the first form.In use, the flap l3 will be folded over the bottom of the bottle.

In Fig. 3 an ordinary tube has been formed, as previously described, byadhesively uniting the edges of a sheet of paper at 2B, the so formedtube being separated into blanks along straight lines 2| and 22providing ends of both front and back walls lying in the same plane.Preferably, in this form of the invention, the line of adhesive 20extends only a major portion of the length of the article, leaving edgesof the sheet unattached at one end. In using this form of the device, anunattached edge of the sheet may be grasped to assist in opening thetubular blank. To assist in identifying the unattached end, there ispreferably provided an indicium 23 adjacent the extremity of theadhesive line, this indicium being a printed line or other mark alsoserving to indicate the point at which the end is to be folded over thebottom of the bottle. Since the portion of the article to be folded isnot joined at its edges, the folding thereof will be more easily ac- 50complished than if the adhesive extended throughout the length of theprotector.

In Fig. 4 an aid to the opening of the form of Fig. 3 is shown in theprovision of die cut thumb notches 24 in one wall, at at least one endof the 55 airticle. Thumb notches may be applied wherever the ends ofthe walls lie in a single plane.

In Fig. 5 the form of the invention illustrated in Fig. 1 is shown as itwould be formed in the type of machine wherein tucks are formed in thewalls of the tube during the course of its manufacture. The tucksprovide gussets 3B. These gussets allow the formation of a narrowerarticle to fit the same size of bottle for which the form of Fig. 1 isdesigned. The gussets aid in the opening of the article from its fiatcondition into a rounded tube, which may be slipped over a bottle. It ispreferred that the flaps I 3 and 54 extend only the width of the backwall and not into the gussets 30, although it will be readily apparentthat the flaps could extend to the front Wall l0. Fig. 5 is by way ofillustrating the device, and any of the other forms herein illustratedmay be provided with similar gussets without departing from myinvention.

Fig. 6 shows a form wherein a straight-cut tubular protector, having afront wall l8 and a back wall I I, provided with a seam l2 and straightends 2| and 22, is provided with a plurality of longitudinal cuts 40extending inwardly from the edge 22 for a minor proportion of the lengthof the article. The cuts 40 extend around the blank and may be formed bythe die which strikes the article from the continuous tube. Theplurality of flaps 4| so formed, are not only easier to fold against thebottom of a bottle, but provide greater protection against dripping andmoisture, inasmuch as there are a greater number of free edges absorbingmoisture into the fibres of the paper. Fig. 6 is meant to be, by way ofillustration, a detail of form which may be incorporated into any of theother illustrated forms.

In Fig. 7 there is illustrated a form of my invention in which thearticle is manufactured from a plurality of webs in any manner wellknown in the art. Preferably, the wider web 53 comprises a soft,stretchable and highly absorbent material, such as towel, napkin, ortissue paper. The narrower web 5| is joined thereto by two lines ofadhesive 20 preferably extending only a major proportion of the lengthof the article and terminating at or near an indicating mark 23. The web5| may be some transparent material through which the label of thebottle or the color of its contents may be observed, thereby preventingmistakes in sales. The stronger web enables the formation and drawing ofa tube, which would be difficult to perform if the entire article weremade of soft, stretchable and absorbent tissue. Either web, of course,may be printed with advertising matter, and the web 5! may be a strong,printable, paper web. In this form it does not matter whether the web 5|is absorbent to any great extent, inasmuch as the greater portion of thearticle is highly absorbent and there will be enough folded around thebottom of the bottle to prevent water from dripping around the edges ofthe web 5|.

In Fig. 8 the form of the device illustrated in Fig. 2 is manufacturedfrom a plurality of webs comprising an absorbent web 50, and a strong,narrower web 5|, the absorbent web being provided with a projecting endflap I3 which may be folded over the end of a bottle.

In Fig. 9 there is illustrated a bottle A, about which a bottleprotector has been placed, illustrating the functioning thereof toprotect the hands and clothes of a person from water collected on thesurface of the bottle. The ease with which an end flap may bepositioned, and the close conformity of the protector to the bottle isreadily apparent.

Other modifications and combinations of the details herein disclosedwill be apparent and I do not intend to be limited except by the scopeof the following claims, which are to be broadly construed.

I claim:

1. Means for preventing drip from bottles comprising a paper tube havingfront and rear walls, said walls at each end terminating in straightlines lying in the same plane, and a series of longitudinal slits spacedacross one end of said tube and extending longitudinally thereof.

2. Means for preventing drip from bottles comprising a flexible tubeopen at each end, said tube being formed of longitudinal strips ofmaterials united at their edges, one of said strips forming the majorportion of the tube and being composed of relatively weak and highlyabsorbent material, the other of said strips forming the remainder ofthe tube being composed of relatively strong and substantiallytransparent material.

3. Means for preventing drip from bottles comprising a flexible tubeopen at each end, said tube being formed of longitudinal strips ofmaterials united at their edges, one of said strips being wider than theother and being composed of relatively weak and highly absorbentmaterial, the remaining portion of said tube formed by the narrowerstrip being composed of relatively strong and substantially transparentmaterial, the strip composed of absorbent material having a flapprojecting beyond the end of the other strip, said flap being ofsufficient length to cover the bottom of a bottle inserted in the tubewith its bottom adjacent the said end of the narrower strip.

4. Means for preventing drip from bottles comprising a tube formed byuniting the longitudinal edges of two strips of flexible materials, saidtube being open at each end and having a flap extending from at leastone end, said flap facilitating opening of the tube to permit entranceof a bottle therein and being of sufficient length to cover the bottomof the bottle when inserted, said flap being formed upon one of saidstrips of materials, the material forming said strip being relativelyabsorbent.

5. Means for preventing drip from bottles comprising a tube formed byuniting the longitudinal edges of two strips of flexible materials, saidtube being open at each end and having a flap extend ing from at leastone end, said flap facilitating opening of the tube to permit entranceof a bottle therein and being of sufficient length to cover the bottomof the bottle when inserted, said flap being formed upon one of saidstrips of materials, the material forming said strip being relativelyabsorbent, the material forming the other of said strips beingrelatively transparent.

ALBERT A. SCHOLL.

